I always thought "pleurisy" was one of those archaic medical
terms that referred to something that was not actually a thing,
like, "the vapors" or "catarrh". It turns out pleurisy is
actually a real thing, and I actually have it, though it's a
term for a condition and not a particular disease. Pleurisy
describes a general inflammation of the pleural lining around
the lungs. In my case, it made it painful to breathe.
It can be caused by any number of things, but in my case it is
most likely the result of a viral infection.

The doctor prescribed an anti-inflammatory, and told me I
could stop taking it as soon as I felt better. I started feeling
better within 24 hours of course, because I take medication
pretty rarely. I took the medicine for another day just to be
safe, but didn't take it yesterday. Today, my lungs started
hurting again. Dang. I think I'm going to take it for the rest
of this week.